LONDON -- Manchester United is closing in on signing Juan Mata after bidding 37 million pounds ($61 million) for the Chelsea midfielder Juan Mata, the teams first move in the January transfer window. United is waiting for its English Premier League rival to sign off on the club-record deal for the 25-year-old Spain international, a person close to negotiations said on Thursday. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the deal has not yet been finalized. Mata is yet to have a medical examination at United, which is in no rush to complete the deal as its next match is not until Tuesday against Cardiff. The transfer would eclipse the 30.7 million pounds United paid to sign striker Dimitar Berbatov from Tottenham in 2008, and show that the American owners are willing to spend to revitalize a struggling team. Matas move could speed up now Chelsea has struck a deal with Swiss club Basel to sign Mohamed Salah. The Egypt midfielder still has to agree to personal terms and pass a medical with the London club. In a sign that Matas departure from Chelsea is nearing after falling out of favour, the clubs player of the year for the last two seasons did not train with the first team on Wednesday. "He has great skill, great imagination, flair and goal-scoring ability," former United defender Gary Pallister said. "A lot of people cant quite understand why he has not been in Jose Mourinhos team after being player of the year for the last two seasons. "He is the kind of player Manchester United fans want to see ... and can get people off their seats in anticipation of the things he can do with a football." Signing Mata would be a coup for United manager David Moyes, and lift some of the gloom surrounding recent performances. The bright spot is still remaining in Champions League contention going into the round of 16 against Olympiakos next month. But the team is seventh in the league, 14 points behind leader Arsenal, and facing a fight to secure one of the four Champions League places. Having already exited the FA Cup, United missed out on a spot in the League Cup final on Wednesday when Sunderland won a penalty shootout at Old Trafford. One fan was so distressed about the loss that he called an emergency number and asked to speak to former manager Alex Ferguson, who retired in May after more than 26 trophy-filled years in charge of United. "Last night, at approximately 10:30 p.m. a man from the Crumpsall area of north Manchester rang 999 in a drunken state demanding to speak to Sir Alex Ferguson about last nights result," Greater Manchester Police said on one of its Facebook pages. "Obviously, it can be a sad and depressing moment when your football team loses a game, however can we all please remember that 999 is to be used for emergencies only." https://www.nycityfootballshop.com/89-Jersey . -- Canadian mens rugby coach Kieran Crowley has made four changes to his starting roster for Saturdays Pacific Nations Cup clash against the United States. https://www.nycityfootballshop.com/31-Jersey . None of them was better than playing with LeBron James again. https://www.nycityfootballshop.com/14-Jersey. According to various reports, the striker is about to sign a five-and-a-half year extension with Manchester United worth a reported 300,000 pounds a week that would see him at Old Trafford until 2019. https://www.nycityfootballshop.com/95-Jersey . -- Thirty years ago, the Detroit Pistons beat the Denver Nuggets 186-184 in triple overtime, a game that remains the highest scoring in NBA history. https://www.nycityfootballshop.com/60-Jersey . Not only that, when Julian de Guzman first stepped on the pitch for Deportivo de la Coruna he became the very first Canadian to play in Spains top tier.LOS ANGELES, Calif. - Veterans Jason Motte, Mark Ellis and A.J. Pierzynski have been left off the St. Louis Cardinals 25-player roster for the NL Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.The team announced its roster Thursday, when the Cardinals worked out in 95-degree heat at Dodger Stadium.The Dodgers have yet to release their roster. The deadline is Friday before the teams meet in Game 1.The Cardinals chose 12 pitchers for their roster: left-handers Randy Choate, Sam Freeeman and Marco Gonzalez; and right-handers John Lackey, Lance Lynn, Seth Maness, Carlos Martinez, Shelby Miller, Pat Neshek, Trevor Rosenthal, Michael Wacha and Adam Wainwright, who will start Game 1.ddddddddddddCatcher Yadier Molina will be backed up by Tony Cruz.The infielders are Matt Adams, Matt Carpenter, Daniel Descalso, Pete Kozma, Jhonny Peralta and Kolten Wong. The five outfielders are Peter Bourjos, Randal Grichuk, Matt Holliday, Jon Jay and Oscar Taveras. ' ' '